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Bipartite Vetting Committee
A bipartite committee, known as the Bi-
partite Working Party, composed of three
British members and three American mem-
bers, has been established by decision of Lt.
(Gen. Sir Brian Robertson and Lt. Gen. Lucius
D. Clay to scrutinize all appointments in the
higher levels of the bizonal agencies. This
step was taken in order to insure that these
leading German administrative posts are
filled by persons free from Nazism and mil-
itarism and qualified by political conviction,
as indicated by past activities, to make a
contribution to the development of de-
mocracy in Germany as called for by the
Potsdam Agreement. The primary respons-
ibility for the selection of suitable officials
in the bizonal agencies rests with the German
lBizonal Executive and Joint Committees.
The US Military Governor and the British
Deputy Military Governor have charged the
Bipartite Working Party with f all powers
to examine all nominations by the German
Joint Executive Committee in the six agen-
cies functioning under the plan of economic
unification of the British and US Zones.
'The only top appointments not scrutinized
are those cases in which persons of ministe-
rial rank in the cabinets of their respective
Laender are named to membership in the
German Joint Executive Committees.
The Bipartite Working Party examines
each nomination in accordance with the
letter and spirit of Control Council Directives
24 and 38. All appointments in the Bizonal
Agencies affecting positions carrying res-
ponsibility for policies and personnel are
merely provisional until the Committee has
given its final approval. In case of dis-
approval, the nominee's services are imme-
diately terminated.
SED in US Zone
A statement by the Civil Administration
I)ivision, OMGUS, said: "Informal requests
from the Zone indicate the J_  1of the
KPD to reorganize under the name of the
Socialist Unity Party (SED). There are also
some indications from the Zone that several
local groups not in the KPD are interested
in applying as local Kreis units of the SED.
"Military Government has no objection to
such applications being filed; nor does it
have objections to the Communist Party's
continuing to meet to support this idea, nor
to the Party's filing a request with Military
Government to change its name. However,
lb, WLIl 1hUt ue FVubIJUi 1U1 _VJLLb1Y "UV
ment to make a final decision on this matte
until after the Moscow Conference of Foreig,
Ministers."
Land Budgets
For the fiscal year ending 31 March 1947
the budget situation in each of the four UT
Zone Laender looks bright. In two Laende
- Bavaria and Hesse - the total expendi
tures for the vear will slightly exceed th
total revenue; in Wuerttemberg-Baden, rev
enue and expenditures are expected t,
balance; and in Bremen, it is expected tha
revenue will exceed expenditures.
The main reason for the balanced o
nearly balanced budgets (original estimate
last year had anticipated large deficits ii
each Land) is the increased tax rates impose(
by the Allied Control Council, which havy
increased the revenue collected in each Lan(
by millions of Reichsmarks.
In addition, expenditures were generall,
over-estimated, including the cost of pay
ments made by local German authorities fo:
supplies and services rendered to the occu
pation forces. Because of technical reasons
such as lack of available raw materials
skilled labor. and trained prsonnel, a numbea
of anticipated projects in each Land had t
be deferred until the next fiscal year.
Following are the estimated total revenue,
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